The Hill School’s student-run Student Philanthropy Council (SPC) is again accepting applications from Pottstown-area nonprofit organizations for its SPC grant program. Interested organizations may complete an online form and submit a Request for Proposal. 

Detailed instructions on how to access the online application and submit other important supporting documents are available here: https://bit.ly/4gCJHqE

Completed applications must be submitted by 5 p.m. on Monday, November 16. They will be accepted on a rolling basis. Applicants with concerns about meeting this deadline may contact the SPC in advance at spc@thehill.org. It may take several months to complete the review process, which will include site visits and/or a Zoom meeting with applicant representatives. Recipients will be announced in April and all applicants will be acknowledged for their community work during an all-school assembly of Hill students and faculty on Friday, May 7 at 1:45 p.m.

Applicants are discouraged from requesting more than $5,000, as the SPC hopes to share the $30,000 in available funds with at least six distinct organizations. It may be helpful to note that in 2026, 10 organizations each received an SPC award.

The SPC Charter requires that the organizations/programs receiving awards have a direct impact on the Pottstown area. The Council also prefers to fund specific aspects of the organization’s programs rather than general operating expenses. Prior SPC grant recipients that reapply for an additional award must demonstrate how new funding would further enhance their program by taking it to a new, broader level of success.

The SPC was established in 2008 through a gift to The Hill School courtesy of the late Charles A. Frank III, Hill '59 P'88 '90 and his wife, Betty. Selected through a rigorous application process, 12 Hill student council members solicit and evaluate local nonprofit requests for funding and then award $20,000 or more in grants each year. Through the Franks' leadership and the generosity of several other donors, The Council became an endowed program at the School in 2012 with establishment of The Student Philanthropy Council Endowment in honor of Kay and David Dougherty.

Last year, the Student Philanthropy Council distributed a combined total of $30,000 to 10 Pottstown-area nonprofits. Learn more about the organizations that received the 2026 grants.